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7/10/2012 4:00PM

American’s Plan for a Merger Takes Off

American Airlines seeks possible mergers or other investment deals, the Dow industrial loses ground on worries from the tech sector and a disagreement over programming fees with DirectTV could cause a Viacom channel blackout. (Photo: Reuters)

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

... the ... American Airlines is ready to take all such pretty much of ... that will tell you all about ... right here ... right now ... on the New Saab good afternoon and welcome I'm Simon Constable ... Mike Spector ... bankruptcy ... reporting of Wall Street Journal joins me now on the set aside ... I always love the idea of Yuki Danny's Company show up to from eating is is just ... going to be all oh my goodness Mike Spector Mohammed and not the healthiest most robust companies to discuss usually not ... so you've got this great story about ... American Airlines parent Amol um ... possibly sending out mojo ... on this right ... right so this is ... somewhat of a departure from before when they first entered bankruptcy in November and said ... we won emerges an independent airline we're not can entertain mergers until we get out of bankruptcy ... they would tell you what I wanna Lamborghini stood ready to calm everyone and their disrespect would be like well are just trying to get anybody to chill out we were always to look at these mergers but we won the bidding against a strong stand alone restructuring plan that could see a solution that can lead to making progress on them now ... the now launching a formal process we expect India is to go and coming maybe it was an Indian non disclosure agreements are right so that we are told without it we can read read the script on other airlines say sign this document commentator and look at nonpublic financial data and buys a person ... will see the deal makes sense that kind of thing ... and this ... has potential to play in a lot of American Airlines stakeholders unions which you may recall ... kind of when a wall and in their own deals with US Airways which is the stocking American for some time doing everything but hanging up a sign saying we want to merge with you ... so ... the unions are bonsai tell what about a potential partners who can ... sell US Airways' we just mentioned has been very aggressive ... aam to others ... we expect that ... American is at least studying and could potentially reach out to bid for the moment is just taking a look at the merits of a combination ... I could include Delta ... could include a Frontier Airlines leader not JetBlue Alaska and some of these you have to question whether a deal makes sense JetBlue The nice to spend time doesn't it doesn't really wanna tie up with American ... aam Nenad Delta and United ... and Delta Murphy Northwest United and Continental there are in a March went to the bankruptcy process users is the last to be Caroline out there so it can only say U S companies might be what he did so with notepad Councilman to a foreign company while I mean you Cornish a lazy day you can look at British Airways which has an alliance partnership with ... American then ... there could be potential investments be done that should also be said you know we've reported before that TPG private equity firm is ... the study in ... America an impossible investments going with a strategic partner ... other private equity firms again next L a long way to go with this process ... but it's becoming formal someone when you have less outlines you know the nonbinding votes the muscle from IMG you have less competition does the government debt war eight the prices again again go up for consumers will share ... more easing if at all I am ... prize money and that would just further in all the of the great things we love about ... airlines in the confinement ... but vague as you ... look a lot of people say Syriza for Delta for example that could have some serious antitrust concerns overlapping routes ... in addition some issues you just mentioned ... um which begins in a breezy that US Airways very complimentary nominations but ... you know Americans been a little bit of resistance that they see some issues with US Airways US hearing on the flip side says American can survive on the sound this is America has to happen ... so lots of noise around us but ... it is a new way to revitalize his entire industry I mean I'm thinking that the court but Richard Branson who heads of the chamber should be spent in Atlantic Penney said if you want to become a millionaire for us to become a billionaire abandoned by an ally ... I and and if the Sox Miami it's just it's it's all fixed costs by for basically employs eleven eleven master planned to lower the price of oil in the short term ... um well I guess is that a family basically the issue right I mean the issue with airlines that he ran in two years that the cost structure to deal with or damage and healing the can be so aunts on when you can and it's hard to predict right so you can add ... something can happen in the Middle East and oil prices go through the roof and all the sudden airlines are in trouble than they can come down again so it's something very difficult event a deal among regular basis ... but is very difficult ... anywhere so was applies that's been far too long Mike Spector ... bankruptcy reporter here the Wall Street tunnel wall mount the vs day ... don't come ... while the Dow is fully half the softer results from Coburg America I will tell you about that ... after the break ... what the revenues up at the beest live I'm Simon console a looking at a show of the big bullet that stocks ended down with a header ... no reasonably healthy Fuss Hoff of the session we got Jonathan Cheng here to tells all about is ... the son Jonathan aam recently gets on the day it seems the man who ... is ... right well I mean look the where ... the balcony of earnings season here ... I know the earnings came overnight but some sort of Alcoa the Droid Aluminum Corporation of America and India the chipmaker's well and and a little to the concerns that with a mean these side there ... um and raising ... questions here about what ... brings it to look like the season was it was able to forecasts that the people look and because I mean it was backward looking right ... that's right and to really for the second half the year those who are concerned that ... the CEO Sedona to the same line that so many ... of us here in the middle is a business that they don't to so we don't really know what's going happen ... in the second half of the year because ... we have always answered ... with them all out you know the euro and US scientists to list them all out ... of ... but though I think it'll be in the spirit of conservative approach the law to CEOs of hat ... that into the ... cups doubly ... conservative and that sort of outlook is not ... what ... analysts ... on Wall Street is it's it's it's very concerning real sizzle some aam and so the small business confidence and indicated I wanted to today it's of ... the sum of skill ... indicator on the high and low skill set has an ... idea that we would all about the don't melt your indicators is into all skill level but but it was addressed to one and intensity of the small business is on the engine of economic growth and so when they don't have confidence ... they don't invest announced that the economy so that was in a very good time was of no and the jobs picture of course has been pretty lackluster the last few months that another beating for little while here but ... I think the consensus on Wall Street seems to be that word and don't expect any miracles ... by the time the election happens and of course that's what ... many people are watching we did see oil drawback was read out what was not all about ... oil just been so Balto ... around the country and you put those concerns but the ... DRAM receiving a site that also concerns about ... demand and yells and ... Dom onto trucks about two point three percent as the duo swings like this pretty pretty pretty regularly over the past two or three weeks which ... is really challenging I know for for people in the in the business of course is going to be the real weighed on earnings for energy companies and ... having the ultimate thing here is putting a welcoming adequacy one good thing because for people tuning in people with dry ... dusty sometimes ... it's nice and it does this send out is that sentiment says it's a symptom of the disease which economic ... stagnation new and ... wonderful having analyst Jonathan Cheng Kestrels and again allied weekdays at ... ten thirty at WSJ Live ... all met Romney is going on the offensive in the back of the offence of any baffled full ... the White House will tell you about that half the price ... ay ay ay ay ... what about the new sub at the beest live I'm Simon Constable ... what Mitt Romney is going on effect on the offensive in the battle for the White House we got Neil King for Street John all ... political ... editor down a ... Washington D C he joins us now ... from ... Neil thank you for joining us from some the wrong reasons a deal that of beating out of it is ... of job's recorded at Bain capital ... and now he's fighting back ... well the more than a little bit of a use for two weeks essentially on you know I'm not really responded very aggressive with all the incoming far from the Obama administration ... based on ... reports another newspapers to like about ... you in and painted to companies that ... allegedly ship jobs overseas and now finally today the Republican National Committee and the ... Romney campaign of ... both amounts of corn a way ... to push back against a ... Romney was the color of a campaign event he was saying that it was Obama as the outsourcer and cheapen ... the RNC release to ... the website in euro zone ... with hundreds of these various cases that combed through ... the stimulus bill saying look at all these various with the ... total taxpayer dollars ... as part of the stimulus package ... of winter companies for solar panels for a whole array of things ... where is the isthe is being made in the United States remain overseas has a great example ALM that that you use side to um hundred and fifty of a hundred fifty one million dollars in stimulus ... went to the manufacturer of lithium I love that phrase at a plant in Holland Michigan ... sounding good and okay so five minutes as ... that is a subsidiary of the Korea based company ... and that they were employing Koreans broadening when a can of employed local us what this right ... bill isn't what it is ... the Republicans that the sign of labor complaints where the local union was NY reviews already Korean people here ... making this ... up and we could be doing that work in the company is also a willingness to try to bring in ... these two Korean workers because these are a technical things that were added to install ... there are a number ... of funny ... at times other stresses this is the limit ... with a list ... of big investment the GG made in Vietnam and the lowering of the list of all is because the energy she is on Obama is jobs council ... so that that investing is all about the of the stimulus but ... they also list of friends and so this ... was pretty funny ... melanoma Institute of Australia received a hundred and sixty two thousand dollar ... stimulus contract to supply the National cancer Institute with tumor samples ... of evidently didn't have enough of mono ensures the polls going into it so we reported ... last reel ... while ... um so they're calling this a court Obama No makes up our souls ... um and it did not have the right please of once a Democrat in reaction to this one did not gonna be pleased about it ... well I mean they're kind of slow and often in their China make that is that really are ... this is the of the ... press covers the ... Romney about his own biography of his claim that he's a job creator let the ... name ... and trying to address the personal resume ... of of ... of Mitt Romney ... meanwhile it's interesting that the Republicans themselves are entering into a trend that I don't normally do which is to call into question but ... you know multilateral multinational nature ... of today's economy and question why is that some of these products are even call competence of the things that came in ... from from outside ... anything goes moment ... on the whole outsourcing front and all ... who is going to ... appear best in the bass line in front of certain middle-class voters in ... three or four states particularly ... industrials this in the Midwest ... and this is all about portraying know either side is the best protector of ... middle class workers ... so ... how how is this playing with with potential votes so a likely but as as as polls the bicycle ... well it's interesting you know in national polls including our own home and watch it ... all came out today on it basically about half of the people say it makes no difference Romney's own ... business ... and then ... the other half that sort of evenly split that some people think that makes them less likely to favor among people more but this thing thing that really makes the Romney campaign worry is that if you narrow it down to a number of swing states the bane experience from his own ... becomes much more of a negative deposited in part because ... I think ... the Obama campaign has been running so many negative ads in those states ... highlighting his experience at Bain ... and it is interesting what one of things I know from from history about the U S general actions before that ... for the White House of Commons is that when the unemployment and inflation rate go up the so-called misery index for the doctrine of president's post some ... intends on to get re elected regardless of where it starts and if it if it if it goes down all in and you know it the evil time to get some were re elected ... this of this two of gone off ... and yes ALM it still appears Mackinac ... the summit is an anomalous and is strange about his alleged role in a ... deal with when one is the fact that despite the misery index this is a big pot ... of you know Brock Obama remains a pretty well late president was your support among growing segments of the population while Mitt Romney for all those other managers ... remains a very ... um like ... candy for the most part and much of his or her collection ... over today show that ... the majority of his own supporters or family because they don't like Brock Obama ... and that's not to support the candidate wants to ... interesting something fascinating fascinating time in your eye lots of anomalies in the selection ... boys a pleasure Neil King of the Wall Street gentle and Womack in tomorrow's paper ... well do you want your empty bay ... when you need to listen to last ... this is a ... situation that the evidence that ... they ... cannot DirecTV is getting rid of MTV ... Michelob guy ... comedy Central on ... why was a commercial ... number of releases to just a limit on Chile New Ramachandran ... I'm joining us from the media mopping Justice tells all about it ... the commercial was one who ... does but I ... have ... done what I want so that that that having a bit of a tussle with DirecTV center and down back could mean that you and your empty vase so lovable locomotive three am happy about that ... what's immobile ... as a financial asset ... the book the mind of fear that the a ... the ... Fed and the still missing and Caleb's big media companies ... I think is gonna ... be a fan of lots of money for carrying a candle for me on and on the channels and and and teeny Micheletti and comedy Central the very popular and ... like I was a big media company it's not that I knew programmer ... I that that it did this to the electorate he can really push around so this is ... I have two big guys doing that ... kind of what what it's like um asking for how much more money is it like a couple bucks or a ... salad that will ... perhaps I will that lie ahead and TV is saying that the asking for thirty percent breaking three zero but the Missouri and that would be at the sea yes the debts of billion dollars of ... extra ... that a billion ... billion billion yet ... and that obviously would affect the cable arithmetic now one other things that ... Michael seems to be pointing to is this this bumbling thing we'll know but when you get a week on just get the chance to watch ... my case will be assigned a child but ... you you have to get what the funny thing all this other stuff they don't want one comes looking um ... yet mean a thing and I can think of the few major network because ... you know the and TVNZ not even midnight yet right ... but there's also like blanket PT class A is all these random who little channels that are bundled and what happens with every meeting company every everybody does ... that ... mean for the big sticking point at the programming costs go up ... you know she reads like Windows live in peace news channels edifice was asking for it ... but ... you know the media company is saying you know we want to ... Viacom to select credit they do have a great lineup of taps running it I mean you've written ... a new cute things I mean these are also that this time it's not like when ... you when you go when I knew you want some trauma channels at me throwing the sports too ... Wolf I spoke with this in a lot of people just like what that how does this of the so far comes not threatening to ... dental care for ... a while ... now and OMG they yet while so was the cool facts ... well Sunday to think they matter that the ratings action further for technically is threatened by Nickelodeon which and I comes flying into the channel ... on had decreased a lot in recent months and that's been a big talking the TV industry ... that included seeing the huge Monday's high while they sat for awhile he added that the rest of the massive must be wrong ... which is a lot like the ... fact that there's a lot of that ... coming up on the flanks and online sites that ... to mean a thing live on them for free and always Mirren say their kids can dislodge that a lot lot of it by maintaining the cable ... side dozens of big sticking point that that people think this is part of its nine this is a continuing problem here for fourteen to TV comedies as the so the new technology so if it's to finance the viewership bright red has the guts of ... what happened I think one question I mean I think it is in a meow economic but lacking on MTV I made it that was a kid has absolutely up all the ... the networking of economics at this G rated banks met your denoting your programming if you put up everywhere online because while I'm you know I bother watching it on the rhythmic able to do what you might not be able to muscle their ... way to go that ... the reason I have to go out with my ... chili Ramachandran thank you Brian much deserve them up to the media does more on the smallest bite but I'm Simon Qassam on that's it that's the new supplement ...